Nascent
by VIIxProductions
Summary: The story of a growing Sephiroth and all the trials Hojo puts him through. But what happens when he rebels and makes some life changing decisions? AU xSephirothxOCx Written by Septasonicxx and InyrilJace. Not yaoi.
1. Prologue

Story by Septasonicxx and InyrilJace. Slightly AU.

Disclaimer: Squeenix owns pretty much everything in this story.

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"Lucrecia!"

"Get back!"

"No! Lucrecia!"

"She's fine, give her space!"

The quiet sound of a baby crying started up, the pure innocence of it shattering the tension in the room for a mere moment before everyone moved back into action.

"Lucrecia!"

"Vincent... I'm so sorry..."

"Lucrecia, it's okay, just relax. He's a beautiful baby boy."

"Vincent, forgive me."

"It's okay, just rest."

"Vincent..."

"I forgive you, for whatever it is that's on your mind. I forgive you."

"Please..."

"Everything's going to be fine."

"I'm so sorry, Vincent..."


	2. Chapter 1

Sephiroth sat calmly in the chair, staring straight ahead as Hojo injected him with something. The scientist was always finding more excuses to give him extra needles and today was no different at all.

"We're going to need to get your hair cut again soon." Hojo murmured as he moved away to dispose of the syringe he had just used.

Sephiroth took the chance to tilt his head and look at his hair, where it was only just reaching past his chin. He knew that if he agreed to get it cut then it would be chopped right back to even higher than his ears, but he also knew that if he said no he would simply be restrained while it was done.

Hojo returned to his side and Sephiroth fixed his gaze on the far wall again, pretending to be disinterested with everything that was happening.

"You're going to turn eight soon." Hojo told him as he wiped something over the spot on Sephiroth's arm where he had just had the needle. With a slight laugh, Hojo shook his head in disbelief. "You really are remarkable, Sephiroth."

"Can I go yet?" Sephiroth asked, glancing up at the man.

"Not just yet," Hojo said, pulling the gloves on his hands off and dumping them into a bin. "I have one other thing I want to try before I cut your hair and let you go."

"You said I'd need to get my hair cut again _soon_ not _today_." Sephiroth protested immediately.

"I'd rather do it now than later, to be honest." Hojo said with a small shrug.

"But I'm not turning eight for a few weeks and you said I'd be eight soon, so let me wait at least another few weeks before you cut my hair. Otherwise you've used the word 'soon' close together but you've meant completely different time frames." Sephiroth pointed out.

"Listen to me," Hojo said, squatting down in front of the boy. "The word 'soon' does not have to mean the same thing each time it is spoken. Therefore I have every right to cut your hair after this next test. No more arguments, please."

Hojo stood again and moved over to his bench, looking through the objects that were there before moving to open a drawer and search through that instead.

Sephiroth stood up.

"No."

"No, what?" Hojo snapped, turning around. "What can you do about it, hm? Nothing. So just sit down and be silent while I do what needs to be done."

"I want to go back to my room." Sephiroth said, his hands curling into fists by his sides.

"No, Sephiroth," Hojo took a step forward, his hands up in front of him and his eyes suddenly showing fear. "Please sit down or you're going to hurt yourself."

"I never hurt myself! It's always you!" Sephiroth spat.

"What I just gave you will react badly in your system if you get upset! You need to calm yourself down." Hojo pleaded.

"You should have thought of that sooner." Sephiroth hissed at him, turning and walking towards the door. His heart pounded excitedly in his chest and he could see the doorknob just up ahead. Soon he would be out and no one would be able to stop him.

"I'm sorry, Sephiroth, but I can't risk you damaging yourself." Hojo said in a low voice. Sephiroth immediately knew what he had done and spun around, eyes wide as he saw the other men approaching him, ready to grab him and shove him back into the chair before strapping him down.

Hojo stood back, simply watching. He always did. Every time Sephiroth made an attempt at leaving and he told the other scientists to take hold of the boy he never moved.

Sephiroth let out a yell, startling everyone in the room as he lunged to the side and pushed a trolley over. The objects that had been on top scattered everywhere, smashing into things and creating just enough confusion for Sephiroth to escape.

He spun to the door and grabbed the handle, pulling it open before darting out quickly and pulling it shut again behind him. He could hear Hojo shouting from inside and one of the other scientists was yelling in pain as he had been hit by a sharp object coming off the trolley.

Not waiting around any longer, Sephiroth took off away from the door just as the alarm went off through the entire building and Sephiroth knew Hojo had pressed the large button that was on the wall. It was only used for emergencies, but Sephiroth guessed that having him on the loose was an emergency in their eyes.

He was now thankful for all those times he had been forced to run long distances, as it meant he didn't have to slow down as he ran. He didn't know where he was going, but at least he knew he was faster than anyone else here.

People were emerging from offices all around, but thankfully no one knew the specifics of the emergency yet so no one tried to stop him. He just kept running, knowing that every second was precious, and soon he found himself running down the emergency staircase.

It was probably only ten seconds since the alarm had been pressed, so there was no one else on the stairs yet. Where should he go?

Sephiroth quickly ran through what he knew of the building, trying to figure out where the best place to go would be. Seeing as he was already heading downwards the best option seemed to be to hide in the basement somewhere. He just hoped he'd be able to make it down the 68 flights of stairs in time.

Each time he reached a platform which signalled he'd reached a new floor he ticked it off in his mind, being sure not to miss one so that he knew exactly what floor he was on at all times and how much further he had to go. Every time he ran past another door the sounds of yelling got louder and he couldn't help but wonder briefly why no one had entered the stairwell.

Halfway down, he felt like he'd just gained five extra lungs. He wasn't tired at all – in fact he felt more alive than ever before. But he was _angry_ like he'd never been before. All he felt like doing was bursting through one of those doors and smashing his fist into the first person he encountered.

But he knew if he did that he would be eventually taken by Hojo again and he hated that thought much more, so he kept going.

Down another ten floors.

Only fourteen left.

Nine.

Three.

Bursting through the door that had 'Lower Basement' written on it, Sephiroth found himself in a dim lit room. Blinking his eyes to try and get used to it, he took a few steps forward. There was a box in his path which was open, and as Sephiroth looked down at it he saw the familiar laboratory tools which Hojo had.

Rage suddenly firing up through his entire body, he let out a yell and grabbed the box, throwing it across the room and watching in satisfaction as the contents spilled everywhere, flying around the room and smashing into walls and other boxes. It was like knocking over that trolley again, but better.

Sephiroth walked forward towards another box before doing the same thing with it, not even caring what was in it any more. The contents went everywhere and he enjoyed seeing it, but unlike every other time he had done something out of pure anger, he wasn't calming down. Every box he threw was only managing to enrage him even more.

Just as the noise from another box being smashed up died down, another noise broke the silence and startled Sephiroth. He froze and turned around, his eyes searching the room until they stopped on a long wooden box with the lid open.

A man slowly sat up from inside the box and turned to look at Sephiroth. Their eyes connected and in that instant Sephiroth realised it wasn't a normal box. It was a coffin.

The man then looked around the room, taking in the overturned boxes and broken objects littering the ground before looking back at the boy.

"You did this?" he asked.

Sephiroth didn't answer. Instead, he turned and grabbed another box, this time throwing it directly at the man and the coffin he sat in.

But the man stood and got out of the coffin before it collided, standing to the side unharmed and watching Sephiroth with narrowed eyes.

"Are you okay?" the man asked gently, glancing down at Sephiroth's hands before returning to watching his face. Sephiroth then realised he was shaking and clenched his hands tightly to try and make it stop.

It worsened.

"Hey, it's okay, relax," the man said urgently, walking over just as Sephiroth dropped to his knees. The anger that had been coursing through the boys body was gone and he was left with a feeling of weakness. He felt as if he was slowly falling apart and it hurt! He was out of breath and all of his limbs ached like he was a normal person who had run the same distance he had.

"Ho-Hojo." Sephiroth stuttered, causing the man's eyes to widen in shock. "He can... help me."

The man was still for a moment as he took this in.

"Listen to me, you need to go back. I can't go with you, but I believe you can do this." the man said then, leaning down to look into Sephiroth's eyes. They were bloodshot and watering, making the man feel even more sorry for him.

"I c-can't. It hurts." Sephiroth complained, his hands splayed out on the ground in front of him as he tried to keep himself up.

"Yes you can, and you will. You're going to go up there and find Hojo so that he can help you. But you can't tell anyone about me, understand? If you're asked, you never saw anyone down here."

Sephiroth nodded minutely, beginning to realise that this was probably what Hojo had been talking about when he warned him not to get upset.

The man grabbed Sephiroth's arm then and pulled him to his feet, allowing the boy to lean on him. Slowly, the two of them began walking towards the door which led to the staircase and which Sephiroth had first come through.

Reaching it, the man transferred Sephiroth from leaning on him to leaning on the door.

"I know you can do it, so go get fixed up." he said encouragingly.

Sephiroth grabbed hold of the doorknob and opened the door, groaning as his body wanted to collapse but he kept standing up. The man slowly retreated away from the door, moving back over to the coffin he had been in before.

Sounds from the stairwell echoed into the basement and Sephiroth could hear the sounds of soldiers searching for him. Some were talking on their radios, but the main noise was created by the sound of their feet pounding on the metal stairs.

Stepping through the door, Sephiroth gritted his teeth. He didn't want to go back to Hojo, but he knew he needed to or else he would die. And he hadn't even turned eight yet.

A moment later, a soldier spotted him and spoke quickly into his headset radio before running down to stand in front of him. It was a young soldier, in his early twenties, and he pointed his gun at Sephiroth warily. The soldiers had been told that the boy would be dangerous and not to underestimate him.

Sephiroth tried to say something but then his vision blurred and he stumbled forwards, feeling his head collide with a step before his eyes closed and his mind shut down.

Inside the basement, the man had just finished emptying the coffin again and was lying down inside it. His name was Vincent Valentine and he wasn't sure whether he'd be able to fall asleep again or not.

That boy was Lucrecia's son. He had her eyes.


	3. Chapter 2

Sephiroth woke up to a light being shone in his eyes and quickly shut them again, groaning and trying to move away. When he found his arms unable to move, he began to panic. Opening his eyes again, he gasped to see he was actually _restrained_.

Hojo took the opportunity to shine a light in Sephiroth's eyes again, catching him by surprise again as he had been focused on the straps around his wrists.

"How do you feel?" Hojo asked as he then put down the light and picked up a syringe, injecting the boy with something. Sephiroth pulled anxiously at his restraints before looking up at Hojo with fear in his eyes.

"What's this for?"

"It was just in case you were still affected by the drug when you woke up. Don't worry, I think you'll be alright now. But answer my question: how do you feel?" Hojo repeated.

"I... feel tired. But okay." Sephiroth answered shakily.

"Alright." Hojo said, sounding slightly upset by the news that Sephiroth was okay. He reached over and began undoing the straps, allowing Sephiroth to sit up on the bed he found himself in and then get out, standing up on the floor.

"What happened to me?" Sephiroth asked.

"I told you not to lose your temper!" Hojo scolded him. "What I gave you reacts with anger and increases it until the body shuts down because it's too much. Next time I tell you to do something, will you be more likely to listen?"

Sephiroth shrugged, staring at the ground so he could avoid looking in the judgemental eyes of the man who had raised him from birth.

"Anyway, the President told me to let you have the rest of the day off since you've obviously had a rough time." Hojo turned away and began grumbling to himself about how unfair that was because he hadn't finished running tests.

Sephiroth's attitude became very different. His eyes lit up and a small smile appeared on his face as he realised he was going to be able to leave and do what _he_ wanted for a change. The President often had to step in and order Hojo to give days off for Sephiroth as Hojo seemed to think he never needed a break, so Sephiroth was very thankful to the President for his help.

Without even bothering to say anything else, Sephiroth darted out of the room. Now that the effects of the drug had worn off there was no need for anyone to panic about him being outside of the labs and he wouldn't be stopped.

Quickly, he found his way to Floor 61 – known as the relaxation floor. He couldn't keep the bounce out of his step as he walked in and looked around, his eyes falling instantly on the seven year old girl who sat on the floor beneath the centre tree, her eyes on the small doll in her hands.

Walking over to her and sitting down, he smiled. The girl's bright blue eyes lifted to him and her entire face lit up before she dropped the doll and flung her arms around him.

"Sephiroth!"

"Hey, Zephyr." he greeted her and hugged back before pushing her away and picking up the doll she had been playing with.

"You got the day off again?" Zephyr asked curiously, innocence radiating from her face.

"Yes." he said simply, handing her the doll and then staring down at his hands.

"You had something happen to you earlier. Are you alright now?" Zephyr asked, referring to the incident which he had just woken up from.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Hojo gave me something weird." he shrugged. Zephyr nodded and then the two of them fell into silence, enjoying each others company as they were the only children in the whole of ShinRa.

That was why Sephiroth had come to her first thing. Because she was his age and they understood each other more than any of the adults ever could. Sephiroth remembered when they had first met clearly in his mind. Her parents, both being Turks, had been about to set off on a mission together but needed someone to look after their daughter.

_"Yes, Sir, we're ready to go. But as you see... we need somewhere for-"_

_ "Oh yes, of course. Didn't I tell you? One of the female Turks has offered to be a babysitter __for you while you're gone." The President smiled warmly at Zephyr's parents before looking down at where she stood between them, holding their hands and looking up at him with wide eyes. She was only five years old and already her blonde hair was doing what it wanted. She looked utterly adorable with blonde bits sticking up all over her head._

_ "Mr President! Sir, wonderful news! You have to come look! Sephiroth's results came back and I assure you they will shock you!"_

_ Hojo had just come running up, a five-year old Sephiroth balanced on his hip. The boy was frowning and chewing on his lip, but his mouth fell open as soon as he looked down and saw the little girl, Zephyr._

_ "Good results, you say?" the President asked with a raised eyebrow._

_ "Yes! Absolutely remarkable! I can barely believe them myself." Hojo gushed._

_ "Would you say Sephiroth has earned himself a reward?" the President continued, the words causing Sephiroth's attention to go to him as the boy waited curiously to find out what was happening._

_ "Uh... yes?" Hojo asked, his eyebrows drawn together in confusion._

_ "Wonderful. Then you are to give Sephiroth the rest of the day off."_

_ Hojo's eyes widened in shock and he looked down at the boy who was now staring right back at him, excited. With a sigh, he nodded._

_ "What am I supposed to do with him, then?"_

_ "Let him go with this little girl to her babysitter. Sephiroth should learn how to relate with people his own age, anyway, and this is the perfect opportunity." the President said happily._

_ So Sephiroth and Zephyr were taken to Floor 61 where the babysitter was waiting. Zephyr was handed a doll to play with and Sephiroth just sat beside her, unsure of what to do._

_ "Do you want to draw?" the Turk-babysitter asked them kindly. Zephyr quickly nodded while Sephiroth just frowned again, unsure of why he was being asked what he wanted when people usually just told him what to do. Namely, Hojo._

_ The babysitter soon put paper and crayons in front of them and Zephyr let go of her doll to reach over and start scribbling on a piece of paper. Sephiroth watched her silently for a moment, wondering if he was allowed to draw as well. It had sounded like he was allowed, so should he risk it?_

_ What should he draw, anyway?_

_ Biting his lip, he reached over and took hold of a yellow crayon, taking his own piece of paper and slowly beginning to draw Zephyr, starting with her hair._

_ After a few minutes, Sephiroth decided he was finished and put down the crayon he had just been using. Picking up the paper instead, he turned it around and held it out to Zephyr, hoping she'd like it since it was of her._

_ Zephyr looked up, her eyes focusing on the drawing. Her bottom lip began quivering and in the next moment, before Sephiroth even had time to blink, her hand connected with his face in a resounding _slap_. He dropped the paper in shock and his mouth fell open as he stared at her._

_ She had started crying and all Sephiroth could do was watch. How had he upset her? He had been trying to make friends by drawing her a picture!_

_ "My n-nose doesn't look like that!" Zephyr whined, putting her face into her hands as she cried. Sephiroth looked down at the image he had drawn and looked at the crayon-nose, realising that he had actually gotten it wrong._

_ "I'm sorry." he sad softly. "Do you want me to try again?"_

_ Zephyr's sobs slowly died away and she lifted her head to look up at him, wiping at her eyes to get rid of her tears._

_ "Yes." she said firmly and with a nod of her head._

_ Instantly Sephiroth snatched up another piece of paper and began trying again, looking at Zephyr a lot more to make sure he got all of her facial features correct. She began giggling after a moment and he stopped, worried that he'd done something wrong again._

_ "Hurry up!" Zephyr urged with a smile, pushing another crayon towards him. "It looks __better than the other one!"_

_ Still not quite understanding everything that was going on, Sephiroth found himself smiling slightly. He went back to the drawing and had soon finished, holding it up for Zephyr to approve._

_ She laughed louder and clapped her hands, nodding happily at the picture he had drawn of her._

_ Sephiroth smiled wider and put the paper down between them so they could both look at it. He was glad he had managed to befriend her. It was nice having someone his age to be around even though he didn't quite understand her._

"Hey, Zephyr?" Sephiroth said quietly.

"Mm?" Zephyr looked up at him again, tucking a stray bit of her long blonde hair behind her ear. It was still as spiky as it had been when she was younger, but now most of it was kept back in a ponytail.

"I met someone in the basement." Sephiroth said.

"Who?"

"Dunno."

They were silent again and Sephiroth tried hard to recall what the mysterious man had looked like. He suddenly remembered something the man had said to him and looked over at Zephyr with wide, fearful eyes.

"What is it?" she asked.

"He told me not to tell anyone." Sephiroth explained quietly. "What if he finds out I told you and gets angry?"

"Don't worry! I won't tell anyone." Zephyr said quickly, her expression going serious as she made a promise. She reached a hand out and he relaxed slightly, shaking it. They often saw the adults shake hands, so whenever they were promising something or making a deal they liked to do the same.

"I want to find him again." Sephiroth told her.

"How come?" She tilted her head to the side and watched him.

"Well, he's all by himself. And he sleeps in a coffin." Sephiroth said and Zephyr gasped, eyes wide.

"A coffin?" she whispered.

"Yeah." Sephiroth nodded.

"Well, make sure to be careful when you do go find him again. I don't want anything to happen to you." Zephyr said, looking down to fiddle with her doll.

"I'll be fine." Sephiroth assured her.

"Okay."


	4. Chapter 3

When night came, Sephiroth managed to sneak out of the lab without being noticed and made his way to the stairwell, quickly beginning the journey down to the basement. He wanted to find out who the man that was living down there was and there was only one way the do that.

Stopping in front of the door labelled with 'Lower Basement', Sephiroth took a deep breath and gently placed his hand on the doorknob, slowly turning it and opening the door so that he could see into the room.

It looked exactly the same as he had left it, with boxes overturned everywhere and objects scattered around.

There was also the coffin still lying there, looking as if it had never been touched.

Sephiroth quickly entered the room and closed the door behind him, eyes never leaving the coffin in case it suddenly opened and caught him by surprise. He didn't know what he was going to say if he did get the courage to open the coffin – or knock, or something – but for now he was concentrating on getting closer.

So he took slow steps towards it, holding his breath as he half expected it to burst open. It was a _coffin_ for goodness sake.

But what if the man wasn't there any more? What if he had been working on the coffin and Sephiroth had only _thought_ he'd come from inside it? The drug Hojo gave him could have been affecting his brain.

Although the man had told him not to tell anyone about him.

Letting out a quiet sigh, Sephiroth squared his shoulders and took the last few steps so that he was then standing right in front of it. Reaching his hands out cautiously, he took hold of the edge of the coffin and pulled upwards swiftly before he could change his mind.

The man's eyes snapped open and they stared at each other silently for a moment, Sephiroth wondering whether he should have knocked first and the man wondering what the boy was doing back.

"Did you want something?"

"Uh, well," Sephiroth stepped back slightly and shook his head. The man slowly sat up and narrowed his eyebrows slightly, his eyes studying the boy.

"So what are you doing here?" was the next question the man asked and Sephiroth clenched his hands into fists to give himself more courage.

"Who are you?" he asked.

The man was silent for a moment before he sighed and said, "My name is Vincent Valentine."

Sephiroth wasn't sure what to say next. The man, Vincent, seemed so calm and in control despite the situation and this made Sephiroth feel very uncertain.

"You never answered my question." Vincent said softly.

"I wanted to know who you were." Sephiroth said defensively, stepping even further away from the coffin now. "Since you... helped me."

Vincent seemed to take Sephiroth's backing away as an invitation and he stood up, stepping out of the coffin. Sephiroth looked away, shuffling his feet awkwardly.

"So," Vincent said softly. "What's your name?"

"Sephiroth."

"Do you, uh," Vincent cleared his throat. "Do you like it here?"

"What?" Sephiroth asked, eyes narrowing in confusion. "I mean, I don't know. Does it matter?"

"I guess not." Vincent said quietly, now also looking away. He imagined that if Sephiroth was still in the care of Hojo, it wouldn't really matter at all whether he liked it there or not. He wouldn't be able to leave, that's for sure.

"Then why did you ask?" Sephiroth asked.

"It's a delicate subject." Vincent said, moving to get back into his coffin.

"Wait!" Sephiroth said, grabbing Vincent's arm before even thinking it through and then falling silent as the man turned back to look at him, waiting for him to say something else. "Don't... I want to talk to you more."

Vincent smiled slightly and put down the lid of his coffin before sitting on it and gesturing for Sephiroth to sit beside him. The boy was very nervous, but he sat.

"Is there anything in particular you wanted to talk about?" Vincent asked curiously.

"Well... why do you live in a coffin?" Sephiroth asked straight-up. He had definitely been wondering what the reason for this was ever since he had been able to really think about what he'd seen.

"It's hard to explain, but the main reason is that I'm trying to stay hidden from the world." Vincent said, his face darkening slightly as he stared across the room. He seemed to be remembering something and Sephiroth wanted to ask more but didn't think he should.

"No one will look for you in a coffin." Sephiroth said.

Vincent smiled and looked down at him again. "Well, you might."

"Only because I knew you were there to begin with." Sephiroth mumbled.

"What time is it?" Vincent asked suddenly, stretching slightly.

"Uh, it's late." Sephiroth said, dropping his head down in embarrassment and expecting to be told to go to bed.

"Interesting how, from in here, there is no visible indication of whether it's night or day." Vincent said in almost a whisper.

Sephiroth watched him for a moment, unsure of whether the man was going to say anything else or not, but looked away when nothing more was spoken. He still wasn't certain he should have come to the basement in the first place, but since nothing bad had happened yet he wasn't going to worry about it.

Vincent sighed and folded his arms. "What do you do for fun around here?"

"Um, I find Zephyr." Sephiroth said quietly.

"Oh? Who's Zephyr?" Vincent asked curiously. He looked genuinely interested and Sephiroth found himself excited to be able to talk to someone who actually cared.

"She's my friend. We're the same age."

"Really? What's she doing here at ShinRa?" Vincent asked with a frown. If another child had been forced into experiments he wasn't sure he'd be able to contain his anger.

"Her parents are Turks so she has to stay on Floor 61 most of the time. I go see her whenever I can but... I'm usually busy." Sephiroth turned his gaze onto the ground and chewed on his lip nervously. He wished he could spend more time with Zephyr. The look on her face when he did manage to show up was addictive.

"Busy... has Hojo been doing a lot of experiments?" Vincent asked, and Sephiroth flinched at the name.

"How do you know about the experiments?" the boy asked hesitantly, aware that he hadn't mentioned them at all.

"I'll tell you one day," Vincent said slowly. "But not until you're older."

"Do you think I won't understand?" Sephiroth asked with a hint of annoyance in his voice. Unfortunately, it only made Vincent smile. Hearing a seven-year-old speak like that was adorable.

Especially since he looked like Lucrecia.

"No. I just feel that now is not the time to talk about it." Vincent said, doing his best not to sound patronising.

"Well, fine." Sephiroth said, folding his arms stubbornly.

"So does Hojo do a lot of experiments?" Vincent repeated his question.

"Yes."

Vincent paused before then asking, "Is he hard on you?"

"Uh, sometimes." Sephiroth frowned and stared down at his hands. "He never really lets me do what I want except when I have a day off."

Vincent was silent again and they looked away from each other, not knowing what to say next. Vincent desperately wanted to tell the boy everything he knew but wasn't sure that now was the time. Perhaps soon... but not just yet.

If only he could go up, out of the basement and straight to Hojo so that he could demand that Sephiroth was treated better. But he knew he couldn't do that. He had to stay hidden or else he would be thrown out and wouldn't have any idea what was happening to Sephiroth then.

He wouldn't be able to live with himself if that happened.

"I should... I should go."

Sephiroth stood up and took a step towards the door before turning to look at Vincent over his shoulder.

"Yes, you probably should. We don't need people wondering where you are." Vincent agreed, also standing. He lifted the lid of the coffin before realising Sephiroth hadn't moved yet and frowning at him.

"Can I come here again?" the boy asked quietly.

Vincent smiled warmly and nodded, amazed that Sephiroth actually wanted to talk to him some more. "Whenever you want, I'll be here."

Sephiroth nodded minutely before turning and heading to the door, slipping out without looking back again.

Vincent intrigued him, not only because he lived in a coffin but now mostly because he was so caring and generally interested in _Sephiroth_ not what Sephiroth could _do_. It was so strange to meet an adult like that as Sephiroth's other experiences showed adults as harsh people who only cared about how strong or smart he was.

Vincent was a bit like Zephyr.

They both thought differently to everyone else.


	5. Chapter 4

Bits of hair fell to the floor, the snip of scissors being the only sound in the room. Sephiroth glared at his reflection in the mirror and silently entertained the thought of escaping and running out. Why wasn't he allowed long hair, anyway? Even Hojo had long hair!

"Now, remember what I gave you a few weeks ago that made you increasingly angry?" Hojo spoke up, making the last cut and them putting the scissors down. "I'm going to give it to you again but I want you to stay calm. Then I'm just going to do a few tests."

Sephiroth didn't respond. He knew he couldn't get out of it again since there were now guards posted at the door, but he wasn't going to speak either. How he wished he could just leave and go find Vincent, who he had been regularly meeting up and gradually forming a strong friendship with.

"I wish I could have down this weeks ago, but I suppose we'll just have to live with the time that we have. But let that be a lesson to you. If you do exactly as I say we can get through the tests quicker." Hojo went on, talking as if Sephiroth actually cared what he was saying.

Sephiroth was eight, now. In fact, it was his eighth birthday that very day. He had asked Hojo the day before if he could have his birthday to himself, but apparently the scientist had too many things he wanted to do.

If the President knew it was his birthday, Sephiroth was sure he'd be given a day off. But he hardly ever saw the President, so how was he supposed to tell him?

As Hojo pulled out a syringe and prepared Sephiroth's arm for it, the boy wondered what Zephyr was doing at that moment. She was probably playing with her doll, sitting by the tree on Floor 61 with her babysitter sitting near her reading a book.

It sounded so simple. So plain.

Sephiroth wanted that kind of life.

"Alright, Sephiroth, follow me." Hojo ordered, having finished with the syringe and disposing of it, pulling the boy to stand up and then dragging him over to the door where the guards moved aside before walking behind them as they walked out.

Sephiroth fought to stay silent, wanting to protest but knowing it wouldn't get him anywhere. He needed to stay calm so that he didn't collapse, as well, so he was also focusing on trying to keep his composure.

"I'm taking you to the training room, alright?" Hojo said as they entered an elevator. "I want to see how well you deal with... well, something different."

Still not speaking, Sephiroth wondered what Hojo could be planning. He'd been to the training room many times before, so what could be meant by 'something different'? The elevator doors opened then and Hojo dragged him out, walking into the training room before stopping and standing still.

Sephiroth frowned as he saw a boy in a strange uniform sitting on a chair in the middle of the room, arms tied and tape over his mouth. His eyes were wide in fright, staring out at the younger boy and man who had just entered the room. As a guess, Sephiroth would say the bound boy was about 16 years old.

"Now, I want you to think about something that makes you angry." Hojo said to Sephiroth, looking down at him.

"But you said-"

"I just cut your hair, remember? Does that make you angry? I know you like your hair long rather than short." Hojo said and Sephiroth narrowed his eyes slightly. Yes, it did make him angry. But he didn't want to have a fit like last time because of the unknown drug in his system. It was frustrating how Hojo seemed to think he could control his life. Even worse because Hojo _was_ controlling his life.

Sephiroth closed his eyes as he felt a rush of anger, realising he'd fallen into the scientist's trap. What was going to happen now?

A cold object was thrust into Sephiroth's hand and he flicked his eyes open, looking down to see himself holding a gun. He'd never had one of these before.

"The boy you see before you is a Wutai soldier," Hojo explained to Sephiroth quietly. "I want you to imagine him as the embodiment of everything that makes you angry. Then I want you to destroy what makes you angry with this gun."

Sephiroth raised the gun to get a better look at it, his hands stroking the cold metal and shivering. He couldn't think properly around the anger bubbling up and wondered how long it would be before he blacked out like last time.

Turning his gaze to the Wutai soldier, Sephiroth slowly pointed the gun out in front of him. There was fear in the young soldier's eyes but Sephiroth tried to ignore it, instead pretending it was Hojo who was tied to the chair. Clenching his teeth, he tensed his finger on the trigger and prepared to pull it.

The soldier suddenly flung his head to the side, squeezing his eyes shut tight in absolute terror of what was about to happen. Sephiroth faltered and half lowered the gun, his hand beginning to shake as the anger in his body fought with the desire not to kill the older boy.

"He's... how old is he?" Sephiroth asked quietly.

"How old is who? You're facing your anger, Sephiroth." Hojo replied coldly.

"No I- I can't." Sephiroth lowered the gun even more and the boy soldier slowly opened his eyes, staring in disbelief as he suddenly had another chance at life.

"Who are you, Sephiroth?" Hojo asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Are you or are you not a SOLDIER?"

"Of course I'm a SOLDIER." Sephiroth said in annoyance. That was how he had been brought up, wasn't it? To be a SOLDIER? To be the best.

"If you were a SOLDIER, you would have just failed your mission." Hojo said. "SOLDIERs follow orders every time. No matter the cost."

Sephiroth found his hand clenching tighter around the gun, his teeth grinding together and his eyes narrowing. He felt like he was going to explode from all the anger within him. How dare Hojo suggest he wasn't good enough to be a SOLDIER! If there was one thing he was, it was a SOLDIER. Nothing else.

Sephiroth lifted the gun up again and focused, sending the anger through his body straight to his arm and hand. Before he could blink, his finger had pulled back and there was a _crack_.

The Wutai soldier had widened his eyes again before being sent hurtling backwards, the chair falling and crashing onto the floor. A pool of blood slowly spread on the ground around the body, slamming home the fact that the boy's life had just been ripped away from him.

"Excellent, Sephiroth! Excellent!" Hojo encouraged, putting a hand on the eight-year-old's shoulder and smiling down at him. "I knew you could do it!"

Sephiroth just continued to stare. He could see the boy's eyes in his head, silently pleading with him not to fire the gun. And the blood. It was everywhere.

"Seeing as it's your birthday today and you've just done what I wanted to try you with a while ago, I'm giving you the rest of the day off." Hojo said, breaking Sephiroth out of his thoughts to look up at the older man.

"Uh..." Sephiroth couldn't even form a word.

"Here, let me take that," Hojo gently took the gun from his hand. "Come with me back to the lab and I'll give you the antidote so that you can leave without worrying about having another episode like last time."

Sephiroth was silent as he followed behind the scientist, the two guards still walking behind them as they neared the lift, got in and waited for it to travel up to the laboratories. Once it got there and they entered the room, Hojo didn't waste time preparing the antidote and injecting it into Sephiroth.

"There. Now you can go and do whatever you want. But tomorrow we'll continue with more of your training again."

Hojo stepped back and put his hands on his hips, waiting for his test subject to make a move.

"I can..."

"Yes, you may go." Hojo nodded.

The boy needed no further encouragement.

As if he himself had been fired from a gun, Sephiroth burst forward towards the door and accidentally knocked down a rack of test tubes in his haste, not even looking back as they shattered on the ground behind him.

He was out the door and gone, far away from the laboratory and Hojo and the _blood_.

The stairs were now familiar to him as he raced down them, desperate to talk to the only adult who understood him. It had become almost second nature now to come down here when he had the time or a problem. Vincent was always open to talking about anything and everything.

Bursting through the Basement door, Sephiroth slammed the door shut and then stilled. He needed to calm down so that he was actually able to speak.

The coffin lid opened as expected and Vincent stood up, worry in his eyes as he walked over to the boy.

"What happened?" he asked gently. Sephiroth squeezed his eyes shut tightly and took a deep breath, clenching his hands into fists.

"I'm a SOLDIER." he whispered. "I'm a SOLDIER. I'm a SOLDIER."

"What did he do?" Vincent asked, squatting down to be the same height as Sephiroth and watching him in fear. "You can tell me."

"But I'm a SOLDIER!" Sephiroth suddenly snapped, opening his eyes to glare at the older man. "I'm supposed to be strong! I shouldn't... I shouldn't..."

His words faltered and he blinked rapidly before lunging forward and wrapping his arms around the father figure in his life. His eyes were wet with tears that he was trying to keep away and sobs were building in his throat as he held on, still trying to keep everything together despite the fact that he was far gone.

"Hey, it's alright. You're alright." Vincent said quietly, holding the small boy and trying to soothe him so that he'd calm down. Never had he seen Sephiroth so vulnerable before. "It's okay to cry."

"Not it's not!" Sephiroth choked out. "I'm a SOLDIER!"

Vincent didn't reply, not knowing what to say and instead just beginning to feel even angrier towards Hojo. How could a man live without regret after causing a small boy to believe crying was a bad thing? Only Hojo was capable of such a thing.

For a while they stayed in that position, Sephiroth continuously trying to stop the tears which didn't seem to be stopping and Vincent waiting patiently.

Finally, Sephiroth pulled back. He was taking large breaths and wiping his eyes, trying to bring himself under control. He was a SOLDIER and he could deal with this like one. He had to be strong.

"I've just..." Sephiroth swallowed and avoided Vincent's eyes. "Killed someone."


End file.
